By Barbara Kollmeyer and Anora Mahmudova, MarketWatch
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- U.S. stocks closed lower on Monday as
investors remained jittery amid escalating war in Gaza and possible
tougher sanctions against Russia.
The death toll inside Gaza mounted over the weekend as Israel
stepped up its ground war, while European policy makers debated
tougher sanctions against Russia in the wake of the downing of a
Malaysia Airlines passenger jet.
The S&P 500 (SPX) closed 4.6 points, or 0.2%, lower at
1,973.63, with 9 of 10 sectors in the red. The Dow Jones Industrial
Average (DJI) shed 48.45 points, or 0.3%, to 17,051.73. The Nasdaq
Composite (RIXF) slipped by 7.44 points, or 0.2% at 4,424.70.
Read the recap of MarketWatch's live blog of today's
stock-market action.
Quincy Krosby, market strategist at Prudential Financial, said
that investors do not react to geopolitical news unless they think
it would impact the earnings potential of companies.
"There is a notion that markets are callous to horrendous events
in Gaza and Ukraine, but markets are not think-tanks. At the end of
the day, it's all about companies' abilities to earn a profit,"
Krosby said.
There were no economic events for Monday and a scant amount of
earnings, leaving investors to face down a day of rising global
tensions.
President Barack Obama on Monday called for an immediate
ceasefire to the fighting in Gaza and said he was concerned with
the rising number of Palestinian civilian deaths and the loss of
Israeli lives.
On the downed Malaysia Airlines plane, Obama pressed Russia to
use its influence with separatists in Ukraine to allow
international investigators full access to the crash site.
Meanwhile, European threats of tougher sanctions against Russia
weighed on stocks in the region.
Also read: Why markets shrug off Malaysia Airlines plane crash,
Gaza and other geopolitifal flashpoints
European stocks fell on Monday. Russia's blue-chip MICEX index
dropped 2.7%, moving below 1,400. Should that hold, it would close
below that level for the first time since mid-May, according to
FactSet. Asian markets closed mixed.
Among commodities, gold(GCQ4) moved higher, while oil
futures(CLQ4) rose to their highest in nearly three weeks on
ongoing geopolitical concerns and as Libya announced a drop in its
production.
Earnings reports
Hasbro Inc.(HAS) fell 2.7% after the toymaker posted an 8% rise
in revenue, but missed revenue estimates.
Shares of EMC Corp.(EMC) jumped 4.3% on reports Elliott
Management Corp. has taken a stake of more than $1 billion in the
data-storage giant and plans to push it toward a breakup.
For more on notable movers, read Movers & Shakers
column.
Netflix Inc. (NFLX) shares rose 1.5% in late trading after the
video-streaming company reported a 25% rise in earnings thanks to
strong subscriber gains. Results narrowly beat estimates.
Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. (CMG) shares jumped 8% in
after-hours, after the fast-food restaurant chain reported
better-than-expected earnings.
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